Rupert Murdoch's tempestuous relationship with a former editor of The Times is to be transformed into a feature film, which will also reference the current UK phone hacking scandal.

According to Variety, UK production company What's It All About? has picked up the film and TV rights to Good Times, Bad Times, the account by former Sunday Times editor Harold Evans of his legendary battles with media mogul Murdoch.

Evans, who edited the Sunday title for 14 years, resigned from the paper in 1981 over what he considered to be unacceptable meddling by Murdoch in editorial affairs.

Murdoch, who went on to complete a controversial acquisition of The Times and The Sunday Times in the same year, has more recently been hit with the phone hacking affair at his UK tabloid paper, the News of the World.

Alongside Evans and Murdoch, the film is also likely to feature someone playing Margaret Thatcher, as documents recently revealed that the former British prime minister held a secret meeting with Murdoch in which she was allegedly briefed on his move to acquire The Times. Murdoch denies this.

In a statement, What's Is All About? creative director Leon Lecash said that a screenplay has not yet been written, but the firm hopes to start filming by the end of 2012.

Lecash said that Good Times, Bad Times documents Evans's battle with Murdoch for editorial control over the world's most famous newspaper, a story that has been brought into "sharp focus" by current events.

"Recent stories surrounding Rupert Murdoch's companies both here and in America have brought the events of almost 30 years ago back into sharp focus," he said.

"I have always realised the dramatic potential of Good Times, Bad Times. Now, as events unfold daily, I realised the time could never be better to bring this story of ultimate justice and spiritual vindication to the screen."

What's It All About?, the company known for Channel 4 documentary The Man Who Killed Michael Jackson, has signed up media commentator Steve Hewlett as a consultant on the production.